Chocolate Truffle tart

Last night I made the chocolate truffle tart from the February 2007 issue of Gourmet.

I love this issue, and plan on working my way through quite a few of the recipes in it. Last Friday we had some friends over for dinner and I made the Meyer lemon souffle for dessert. It turned out beautifully, although I would have liked it to be a teensy less eggy and a bit more citrusy. On the next try I'll try more zest and a little more juice, so that the brightness of the citrus really has a chance to shine.

Um, where was I?

Right, chocolate truffle tart.

I had a date for a book club meeting tonight, and decided that it would be a perfect time to experiment and to give away most of the fruits of my labors. On Molly's recommendation I made it last night, so that the flavors would have a chance to develop. What I did not consider when choosing to do this is that we are recovering from a snow and ice storm here, and although the roads have mostly been cleared, cars all over the city are frozen into their parking spots. So the tart that I made in advance was sitting in my fridge mocking me when I got the call that book club had been cancelled. Mocking me, I tell you.

Luckily today is February 15th, ie. the day after Valentine's Day. So tonight I sliced up the tart into slivers, wrapped them in parchment paper and delivered them to all of my neighbors. They all think I'm a little Martha already, so why fight it? The way I see it, everybody wins. I get rid of the tart, they get to smugly label me as a weird random tart-maker, and we all get to eat the most fabulous truffle tart ever.

The recipe can be found here.

I used Ghiradelli 60% bittersweet bars for the filling, Green and Black's Organic Cocao powder for dusting, and to make it a little more interesting, I sprinkled Australian Murray River salt on the top. It was just a light sprinkling, but it was a lovely contrast to the rich, creamy texture and fruity sweetness of the tart. I would only use this or fleur de sel to garnish, as the flakes are big enough to notice, but they still melt away easily. A coarser salt would be too intense, and a finer grain would probaly just give the tart an unpleasant salty flavor.

This tart is gorgeous, silky and rich and complex. It is truly impressive and very easy to make. One last thing: do as Molly suggests, and eat it at room temperature for the maximum effect. Otherwise it is good, but the details just don't pop. Think about it, when was the last time something baked tasted best when pulled straight out of the fridge? Give it some counter time, and stop by to admire your work while it is warming up. It's well worth the wait.

Comments

[Erin]

Oh my goodness that looks good. I wish I was your neighbor--they obviously don't deserve you. :)

[Maman]

Wow .. looks so great and wish I didn't live a couple of States away .... beautiful presentation!